Chapter 4

I do not own KvK.

The machine ended up being more complicated than Kat had anticipated. Which was saying a lot, because he'd already expected it to be pretty difficult to put together anyway.

Finally, Kat was screwing in the final bolt on his large ray gun. If he weren't on a stool, the machine would have easily been five inches taller than him. As if figuring out how to aim it at himself wasn't going to be hard enough...

Luckily, just as he had that thought, Coop and Dennis opened the door to the shed and stepped in. He took notice of their hostile expressions and quickly made use of his new verbal skills, knowing that otherwise his day-long project would be no more than a pile of rubble.

"It isn't evil. I am using it for selfish purposes, but it's nothing that will destroy you or the planet"

Dennis still seemed skeptical, while Coop looked like he was ready to listen. His guard was still up, but hey, he was listening.

"I'm going to use it to become a human" Kat said, before either of them could ask. Both teens' heads snapped to stare at him in shock. Kat said no more, he simply waited for one of them to come to their senses. It took less time than he thought it would.

"Why would you want to be a human?"

Kat wasn't really sure how to respond to that. He decided to go with a partial truth.

"If I am being honest, my leader will want me to prepare for the invasion soon. However, as much as I don't really want to admit it, I have grown fond of this planet. If I become a human, then I can pass it off as a mishap from an explosion of sorts, and tell him that I won't be at my best if I am in a completely different body. I'll just say that it will wear off eventually, but that I'm not sure when. That would also prevent him from sending a substitute in my place, if I were to say that..."

At some point during his ramble, he was talking more to himself than the two boys in front of him. Still, he could tell that they'd heard what was important.

"Coop, would you mind shooting me with the beam? It's too large for me to be able to aim it at myself, and I didn't think about installing a timer sadly"

Coop's eyes narrowed, but not suspiciously. More like he was confused and trying to find answers by squinting really hard or something.

"Why me?" he asked. Kat hesitated for just a moment, before steeling his nerve and looking Coop dead in the eye, his mouth curled into a small smirk.

"Well, if I must tell you, I trust you more than I trust Dennis"

The boys both blinked owlishly at Kat, as Coop's mouth opened, but then closed as the owner could find nothing to say in reply. Kat almost thought his cheeks were stained a pale pink for a moment, but he disregarded it as a trick his mind was playing on him. As soon as this was done, he'd need a nap...

"Fine" Coop managed to choke the word out. Kat smiled as he jumped down from the stool and stood patiently on the ground as Coop went to aim it.

"So, I just... Press this button?" Coop said uncertainly, his finger hovering over the large green button.

"That's right. Is it aimed properly?" Kat asked. Coop adjusted the angle slightly before confirming it with a nod. Kat smiled.

"Then fire away"

Coop pressed the button, and a green beam of light shot out of the gun. Dennis and Coop covered their eyes as it almost blinded them, and Kat stood there, feeling his body morph and shape.

It hurt a lot more than he'd thought it would.

When it was over, he was kneeling in pain, his eyes closed tightly as the pain slowly went away. He heard Coop and Dennis walking over to check on him, but didn't stand as another realization came over him.

"Kat? Does it still hurt?" Coop asked. Kat wasn't sure if his voice was curious or concerned, but he shoved off his hopes before they could even begin.

"Not really, but in case you hadn't noticed, I'm kind of naked"

He didn't really know how to categorize the strange sounds the boys made, though 'embarrassed' probably fit the best. He heard them running out of the shed, and after a few minutes where he wondered if he was supposed to follow, they came back and he looked up, keeping his lower half hidden, to see that Coop was holding a towel, holding it out for him to take. Both of them were looking away and covering their eyes, their cheeks stained light pink in embarrassment.

"Tie this on your lower half and we'll get you inside for something more permanent" Coop said. Kat took it graciously and quickly wrapped it around himself.

"Are your dad and Millie inside?" Kat asked once Coop and Dennis uncovered their eyes. Coop shook his head.

"Dad's at work and Millie's at Phoebe's house. They'll be back soon though, so we should hurry if we're going to get you dressed"

Kat quickly nodded his head in agreement and followed Coop inside. Dennis went to the front yard, so that if Burt or Millie got home he could stall them for a bit.

When they arrived in Coop's room, Kat stood awkwardly in the middle of the floor while Coop went and grabbed a purple polo shirt and some jeans from the back of his closet. He brought them over to Kat and quickly left the room, leaving Kat to try and get dressed.

It took longer than Kat would like to admit, but he finally managed to pull on the clothes as the car pulled into the driveway. He left Coop's room, and found Coop standing in the hallway.

"So, what's the plan? How are you gonna convince them that you're you?"

"I'm not sure" Kat replied honestly. He really hadn't thought this far ahead. Coop sighed.

"Well, they're already here. We're gonna have to wing it"

Kat's human form will be described in the next chapter. For now, stay tuned! ;)